A Cup of Coffee
by elvenrarehunter
Summary: [Flightplan] Sometimes things just have to be said over a cup of coffee. Sometimes people better understand with coffee in their system. CRxKPFIRST FLIGHPLAN STORY YEY R&R no flames plz
1. PART I

_Greetings. I know I'm branching out a bit but I was wondering how no one could have posted a story about this magnificent movie. (GASP) So I decided I was going to be first. I wrote this little piece as a one-shot, but I might continue it if I get enough reviews. For those of you who haven't seen Flightplan, you really should. It's an awesome movie. Thiskind of stemmed from mybelief thatCaptain Rich really did want to believe Kyle Pratt, but couldn't because he had to follow standard procedure. I'm sure anyone in his position would have done the same thing. (WARNING: SPOILERS HERE) When he walked out and kind of said she was a terrorist, Icould just hear something in his voice that wasn'tjust betrayal. It seemed to me thathewas brokenhearted. Then hegot the FBI agents or whoever they were out of the way at the end.I kind of think he has a thing for Kyle Pratt. So that's where this came from.Without further ado or incessent rambling...A Cup of Coffee._

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A Cup of Coffee **

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Kyle Pratt sat at her kitchen table in Long Island. She had decided to move there after she found out exactly what had happened to her husband. That was, what, five, six months ago. 

Julia was up in bed still, sleeping soundly. She had no idea what had gone on in that plane, and for that, Kyle was glad. She didn't want her daughter having nightmares about it, though she knew she would be plagued by the spectral visions of the air marshal. What was his name again? It had been so long since the incident that she could barely remember his name, but his face and voice were clearly implanted in her mind.

_Your husband didn't jump. He flew._

Kyle slammed her fist on the table. Damn him! Damn him and that flight attendant. They were in it together and her husband had to die for the sake of their twisted game. The tears came to her eyes, spilling out the sides and running down her face. If only they hadn't killed him…if only they hadn't gone on that flight home…

There was a soft rapping noise from the front of the house, startling Kyle. She let her heart slow before she got up. She walked over to the door and stared through the eyehole. Standing there was a rather familiar distinguished looking man. She opened the door, staring icily at the pilot.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"Ms. Pratt?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes.

"Captain?" He cleared his throat.

"Uh…er…well…the thing is…" he started. Kyle's gaze softened.

"Would you like to come in?" she asked. The captain nodded, a little relieved by her gesture. She walked him into the kitchen. "Coffee?" she offered. He nodded slowly. She poured him a mug and sat down at a seat near the coffee pot. She motioned for him to take the other seat. He sat down and laid his hat on the table. "Now, what was it you were saying?"

"Yes…um…I know I've apologized to you numerous times about this, but I still feel terribly about the incident with your daughter," he said. Kyle shrugged indifferently. "I know I was…er…" he started, searching for the right word.

"An arrogant jerk?" she supplied, sipping from her coffee cup. Captain Rich smiled uncertainly at her.

"I suppose I was, among other things," he said, a little amused. He quietly swished his coffee around in his mug. "But I wanted to let you know that after your flight, we've come up with some new standards."

"Really?" Kyle said, interested in the slightest bit.

"Yes, but…er…I don't think that you would be interested in such things," he said, going slightly red, which he hid by looking down into his coffee cup. Kyle smiled slightly.

"That's not the reason you came here," she said. His face went a shade darker.

"Not the entire reason," he mumbled, drinking from his cup. Kyle stared at him for a moment.

"Well then, what is?" she asked.

"I'm not exactly sure how to say this," he said. He looked up at her for a moment, but found himself unable to hold her gaze and once again dropped his gaze to his cup. "I suppose I should start by saying this: I care deeply for your daughter. All along, I thought maybe something was amiss. I knew…I knew that no woman would imagine her child. I saw how much you cared for her and you reminded me of someone I knew," he said. Kyle was a bit shocked.

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked. Rich couldn't bring himself to look at her.

"I admired your courage and determination. Not only did you, on countless occasions, stand up to myself, the flight attendants, and our…um…air marshal… in order to make us understand what had happened to you, you stood tall in the face of a terrorist," he said. Kyle opened her mouth to speak, but found herself at a loss for words. "When you walked onto the plane and the flight attendants told me you were there, I was proud, proud to be the one that was to fly you on the maiden voyage of your design. I can't tell you how honored I was to meet you that day, how hurt I was to hear that no one would trust you. I wanted to trust you, I did trust you, but I had to follow procedure."

"I understand that now," she said, going slightly pink. "But then I just wanted my daughter back. I still don't see the reason you're telling me this." Rich swallowed before continuing.

"That day, when the FBI wanted to question you no sooner than you found out that your husband had been murdered, I felt angry. Angry at the FBI, angry at our terrorists, angry about your plane. Not my plane, yours. You designed it, I merely flew it. I wanted to make sure you would not be hurt again that day. I stood up for you because I wanted to protect you." He fiddled distractedly with the cuffs on his shirt. He looked up at her, their eyes meeting for a moment. He held her gaze this time. "I still do."

"What?"

"I want to protect you," he said. Kyle looked confused. Rich reached across the table and placed his hand on hers. "I know I can't replace your husband. I'm not going to try. But I want you to know that I'm here for you if you ever need me." Kyle looked like she was about to speak when she heard footsteps.

"Mommy?" Julia called from upstairs. Kyle laughed and ran a hand through her hair.

"I'll be up in a minute, sweetie," she said. Captain Rich withdrew his hand and began to stand up.

"I suppose it'll be about time for me to go," he said. "I'm sorry to have bothered you, Miss Pratt." He began to leave, but Kyle placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Captain. It seems I misjudged you," she said. He smiled at her.

"Most people do," he said. "Good day. And thank you for the coffee." Kyle nodded and watched as he faded from view. She smiled. Maybe things weren't so bad.

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_Love it, hate it, that's your prerogative. Lemme know what you think. Constructive criticism welcomed. No flames please. _


	2. PART II

_With 16 reviews, it's kind of hard to tell everyone that you're not going to do a second part to this. And in fact, a third and final part is in the works. I hope you all enjoy installmenttwo of A Cup of Coffee_

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**PART II**

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It was a couple weeks after Captain Rich had come to her house and expressed his feelings to her. She still couldn't keep her mind off of it. She looked at the clock on the dashboard and realized she was going to be cutting it close. She sped up slightly, trying to remember the way. It was only Julia's third lesson after all and she had forgotten the directions to the place on the kitchen table. 

With five minutes to spare, Kyle pulled into the parking lot of the dance studio where Julia took lessons. Julia hopped out of the van and waited for her mother, who walked her to inside the doors where the dance teacher was waiting. Kyle didn't really like the dance teacher, but Julia seemed to love her so she kept her opinions to herself. The teacher smiled, but Kyle could tell it wasn't heartfelt.

"Go on back and get changed," she said, "the other girls are just finishing." Julia nodded and then walked down a side hallway. The teacher walked away and followed Julia down the hallway, leaving Kyle standing there by herself. She rolled her eyes and walked back outside, cursing the woman under her breath. She drove back home and pondered what to do during the two hour class. She caught a glimpse of yellow out of the corner of her eye she looked at it. It was the phone book. She didn't remember moving the phonebook from its place in the drawer. She looked skyward.

"If you say so," she muttered. She picked it up and flipped through the pages. She stopped on a certain page and moved her finger down the row of names. Picking up the phone, she began to dial the number. It rang multiple times. Then…

"Hello?"

"Hello, I'm looking for Captain Richard Barton, is he in?"

"Speaking."

"Hello, Captain. This is Kyle Pratt."

"Ah, Miss Pratt. How may I help you?"

"I was wondering if you were busy."

"I've got a flight to Berlin at six o'clock, but other than that, no." Kyle looked at her watch. It was only three o'clock.

"Would you like to join me for a cup of coffee?" There was a moment of silence.

"I…uh…sure. That sounds great," he said, sounding a little caught off-guard. She smiled.

"Alright. Let's say we meet at BeansTalk? What do you say?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you there," he said. They both hung up. She looked skyward.

"What have I gotten myself into?"

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Twenty minutes and seven dollars later, she found herself at a small table in the back corner of BeansTalk with a cup of French Vanilla coffee and a muffin for herself and a cup of black coffee for the captain. She was getting a little worried that he had stood her up, but then she saw him walk in. She could see a little but of nervousness in his posture. She smiled and got up, walking over to him. 

"Captain," she said. "I've already gotten you a coffee."

"Ah…thank you, Miss Pratt," he said.

"Please, just call me Kyle," she said as she brought him back to the table. He followed her, unsure of what was going on. She offered him the other chair as she sat down and he took it, wrapping his hands around the cup she had got for him. Kyle studied him as he put some sugar in his coffee. He looked different now. Maybe that was because she had caught him off duty. He was wearing a navy blue polo and jeans, a far cry from his usual pilot's uniform. He looked up at her when he felt her gaze. She smiled, trying to put him at ease, but this seemed to have no effect.

"So Captain," she began.

"Rich."

"Rich, you told me before that new standards have been implemented," she said. He smiled.

"Yes. We want to make sure nothing like this happens again," he said. She nodded, encouraging him to go on. He began to rattle off all the new procedures and how they could be conducted. He seemed very comfortable now, talking about what he knew best. Every now and then, he would take a sip of coffee. He stopped after a few minutes, seeming a little flustered. "But I've been rambling." She shook her head.

"No, not at all. I find it comforting to know that I can fly without fear for my daughter," she said. She placed her hand on his. "Really." He smiled at her.

"I'm glad that I can put you at ease," he said. She smiled at him.

"There's something I need to tell you," she said. Rich leaned forward.

"What?" he asked, afraid he had done something wrong. She paused for a moment.

"I don't know how to say this," she said. "I guess I can start with this: I've trusted you ever since I walked onto that plane. You seemed like a person who would plow through any situation and get everyone where they needed to be."

"That's not exactly true," he said, his face a slight shade of pink. "I wasn't sure that we were even going to take off." Kyle smiled again.

"Let me finish," she said. "I knew that you were a man who would do his best to accommodate the passengers and ensure them a safe trip. When my daughter went missing, the only person I could think of that was on that plane that I could turn to. You reminded me of someone that I knew." Rich smiled when he figured it out.

"You're stealing what I said," he said. She laughed.

"I suppose a little bit," she said. "But I can't tell you how grateful I was that you listened and attempted to help. Yes I got a little…"

"Frustrated? Annoying?" he supplied, causing her to laugh again.

"I bet I was, but I just wanted to find my daughter," she said. He shook his head.

"I would have been the same way," he said. She cocked her head.

"You've got kids?"

"One daughter," he said.

"How old is she?"

"She's twelve, going on twenty," he said.

"What's her name?"

"Eva Rose," he said. "Her mother named her."

"I can tell," she said. She caught sight of her watch. It was 4:30. "I'm sorry to cut this meeting short, but I need to go pick up my daughter at her dance class." He got up.

"Here, I'll walk you to your car," he said. She nodded and walked with him to the front of the store where he opened the door for her. They got to her van, which was surprisingly right next to where Captain Rich had parked. "Kyle," he said. She turned around from unlocking her car.

"Yes?" He placed a hand on the side of her face and leaned forward, his lips brushing hers. He held her there for a moment before backing away. Kyle seemed to still be reeling from the kiss.

"Um…yeah…ok…" she said. "So, same time next week?" Rich smiled.

"It's a date."

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_In case anyone wonders why I brought up the child, I did it for two reasons. For one, Kyle said that he had to do a bunch of things in the movie "just like if it was your own kid" or something to that effect. And another reason is because she is going to make a brief appearance in the next chapter. _

_Please leave a review. No flames please, but constructive criticism welcomed and appreciated._


	3. PART III

_I know...this is the last bit for this story. This wraps up the loose ends and gives a cut ending. It was short because I didn't want to drag it out. I might be convinced to do a regular story with these characters. _

_I want to say thank you to all of my faithful reviewers who have reviewed to this story. I hope I did not disappoint._

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**PART III**

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Two years and a thousand coffee cups later, Kyle was in the back room of a church. She was dressed in a beautiful white dress, her hair down around her face as she had always worn it. Behind her, her bridesmaids and maid of honor were bustling about, trying to get everything done, but for Kyle, everything was moving in slow motion. Her matron of honor, a mother of one of the girls Julia went to dance class with and with whom she had become good friends with, walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder. Kyle looked at her. 

"You look like a deer in the headlights," she said. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine, Rhia," Kyle said, though it didn't sound convincing to either of them.

"No you're not," she said, sitting down next to Kyle. Kyle looked out the window, where it had been cloudy earlier but had now started to rain.

"What if this doesn't work out? What if he doesn't love me like he thought he did? What if he doesn't show up at all?" Kyle asked. Rhia shifted her gaze to the floor.

"Everything will be fine," she said. Kyle glanced at her.

"Rhia…" Said person looked up. "Will you go see how things are going with the boys?" she asked. Rhia nodded and smiled, getting up and exiting. That left Kyle alone with the bridesmaids and Julia, who ran up to her and sat down on her lap, leaning her head against Kyle's shoulder. Kyle ruffled Julia's hair.

"Mommy, when is everyone going to be ready," she asked.

"Soon," Kyle answered. _Not soon enough_ she thought to herself. She pulled Julia close before the child wriggled out of her arms. She smiled and ran over to one of the bridesmaids. Kyle watched her for a moment before Rhia came back through the door, looking very pale. "What's wrong, Rhia?"

"Nothing," she said.

"You're a horrible liar."

"Well…"

"Yes?"

"He's not here yet," Rhia answered very quickly, hoping that if she said it quickly, it wouldn't freak Kyle out as much. Kyle let this sink in.

"He's not here?" she asked, getting pale. All of her fears were coming true. She looked scared. Rhia held her for a moment before there was a knock on the door. Rhia let Kyle sit as she walked over to the door. Standing there was a very soaked fourteen year old, Eva. She shook out her hair and walked in.

"Kyle," she said, setting something down out of Kyle's line of vision. Kyle looked up. "Sorry I'm late, dad's flight got delayed and I generally don't travel with him, but he wanted me with him today. But now I'm rambling." She pulled off the long coat that could only belong to her father and draped it over the back of the chair. She turned to pick up the object from the table behind her. "Dad wanted me to give this to you. Said you'd know what it means." Kyle shook her head.

"What is it?" Eva turned around and Kyle smiled, all her fears leaving her at once because she knew everything was going to be alright.

Eva was holding a cup of coffee.

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_So...thoughts? Opinions? Criticism? Drop me a line. Constructive criticism welcomed and appreciated. No flames please though. Flames aren't nice. They blew up Rich's plane. You wouldn't want to make Rich sad..._


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